Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I know everyone is doing their best, and people are going out thinking there is loads of money, but it is different when one goes into whatever local authority. The witnesses might say there are some vacancies, but we now have what we never had before, namely, homelessness clinics, which are chock-a-block. People cannot find housing, whether rented accommodation or whatever. Most people do not want to go on housing assistance payment, HAP. There are the two stories here. It would be lovely to have people in my local authority to refuse houses because something like six local authority houses were given out last year because none were bought or for whatever other reason. The perception is that money is available and I am delighted to hear that. The witnesses were talking about houses. I will give the committee an example of which I know they are all aware. The grant given last year for local authority houses, that is, for the builds that had to be done, is gone. The local authority has spent more than €300,000, so this year it will go back to the Department to look for an extra €500,000. At least now I can go back and tell those concerned not to tell me no funding is available. I do not mean this in a bad way and I do not wish to be negative all the time but I find myself constantly making representations for people and going back to them to say there are no houses. I know there are 2,500 on our local authority housing list. It is hard when one then hears that money is available. It is good to know it is available. All of us here, Senators and Deputies, deal with our local authorities. I know we will not get everything and I know we can only get a certain amount of houses, but it is good to know we will now have extra funding coming in. Things are starting to change. I had never seen homelessness clinics until recently. As I said, I was a councillor for nearly 18 years. In the past five years, there have been such significant changes. People are not making the housing list.

I will finish on what I know is probably a different line of comments. The witnesses are falling down on mortgages. I have a massive issue with this and I have said it before. I know the local authorities are not a body of lending agencies but this is where they are falling down. People will buy these houses and do them up. Other options need to be considered as well. I think the repair-and-lease scheme will work, as will the buy-and-renew scheme. I do not know what the uptake will be on the buy-and-renew scheme. It must be teased out. Major issues are not being resolved and work is not being done but, overall, I acknowledge everyone is doing their best.